(RNS) — In a rare move, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has issued a statement reaffirming its position on immigration, adding to a growing chorus of religious voices challenging some of President Donald Trump’s rhetoric and policies.
Church officials sent the statement, titled “Church Reaffirms Immigration Principles: Love, Law and Family Unity” to reporters late Thursday evening (Jan. 30) and published it on the church’s website. The statement outlined three principles that “guide the Church’s approach” to immigration, beginning with “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints obeys the law.”
The second and third principles, however, were something of a theological rejoinder to Trump’s hardline immigration policies.
“We follow Jesus Christ by loving our neighbors,” the statement read. “The Savior taught that the meaning of ‘neighbor’ includes all of God’s children.”
The statement continued: “We seek to provide basic food and clothing, as our capacity allows, to those in need, regardless of their immigration status. We are especially concerned about keeping families together.”
Although the statement does not mention Trump by name, the timing of the document points to growing religious frustration with the president’s immigration policies, which include virtually freezing the U.S. refugee program, rescinding an internal government policy discouraging immigration raids in “sensitive locations” such as churches and a promise to enact the largest mass deportation operation in U.S. history.
While it is unusual for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to issue a statement about current political issues, the tradition has repeatedly departed from its otherwise reticent posture when it comes to Trump’s policies, often producing timely statements implicitly rebuffing his stances on immigration.
In December 2015, when then-candidate Trump proposed a ban on all Muslims entering the country, the church issued a statement saying that, while it is neutral when it comes to partisan politics and campaigns, it is not “neutral in relation to religious freedom.” The church spoke out again when Trump was elected the following year and promptly signed an executive order banning refugees from seven Muslim countries.
“The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is concerned about the temporal and spiritual welfare of all of God’s children across the earth, with special concern for those who are fleeing physical violence, war and religious persecution,” read the statement from the time. “The church urges all people and governments to cooperate fully in seeking the best solutions to meet human needs and relieve suffering.”
The church also issued a statement condemning “violence and lawless behavior” shortly after supporters of Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
The church’s new statement adds to a rapidly growing list of religious organizations and faith leaders who have condemned Trump’s immigration policies. On his second day in office, Trump sat in the Washington National Cathedral while Bishop Mariann Budde, the Episcopal bishop of Washington, delivered a sermon in which she pleaded with the president to “have mercy” on people impacted by his policies, including immigrants. The next day, Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, issued a statement describing several of Trump’s executive orders — including his actions regarding refugees — as “deeply troubling” efforts that will “harm the most vulnerable among us.”
Around the same time, the USCCB joined other Catholic organizations in condemning the president’s decisions to rescind the sensitive locations policy, and earlier this week, a slate of Jewish organizations and communities — including the Union for Reform Judaism, the largest Jewish denomination in the country — signed a letter urging the president not to enact “widespread persecution of immigrants.” In addition, a collection of Quaker groups filed a lawsuit on Monday against the Trump administration for rescinding the sensitive locations policy, alleging doing so violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and their First Amendment right to freely assemble, and the National Council of Churches has also condemned the removal of the policy.
Trump and his supporters, however, have remained defiant. Trump dismissed Budde’s sermon as “nasty in tone,” and Vice President J.D. Vance, who is Catholic, suggested in an interview with CBS that U.S. Catholic bishops are advocating for immigrants and refugees because they are concerned about their “bottom line.” In addition, Sen. Mike Lee of Utah, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has accused Bishop Budde of “political priestcraft” on his personal X (formerly Twitter) account.
Religion News Service reached out to the church last week about their immigration stance, as well as Lee’s comments. A church official declined to comment on Lee’s remarks, but eventually sent along the new statement on immigration on Thursday.
Lee’s office also did not respond to a request for comment on the church’s new statement.